


Pen Pals

by Immortal_Magic_Freak



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Family, Fluff, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pen Pals, Romance, teen!AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-18
Updated: 2015-10-26
Packaged: 2018-04-27 00:06:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5025949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Immortal_Magic_Freak/pseuds/Immortal_Magic_Freak
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Teen!AU - When the school decides to bring in the Pen Pal system, Castiel Novak is over the moon, Dean Winchester, however, is less so. But, as Dean continues to talk to his Pen Pal, will he change his mind on what he thinks of the programme? Will he change how he treats his Pen Pal when he meets them in person? Will Castiel finally have a friend to call his own? *Slight Sabriel too*</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day 1

**Author's Note:**

> Authors Note: HEYO! XD Please tell me what you think; I would love to know XD I own nothing and no one.
> 
> BY THE WAY: This is only my 3rd Supernatural fic and the first one as a Teen!AU, so...sorry if it's shit...
> 
> Please, please review XD

**Dean**

The school had an idea - Pen Pals. Of course, it wasn't the kind where you'd be writing to someone in a different school, no...we'd be paired up with another person, in the _same_ school - in _any_ grade. It was taking place during our English lessons, one person of each pair being told to start off the conversation by introducing themselves, _without_ telling the other person their name - we had to sign off using a pen name... It was stupid - no one wanted to do it... Why would we? It was a waste of time!

But we had no choice.

So, that was why I was currently writing the first letter to my ' _Pen Pal_ '.

_Dear... Whoever you are,_

_I'm going to be honest with you - I don't want to do this. It's stupid and annoying. Honestly, I'd much rather be doing Math and I_ hate _Math!_ Anyway _, I suppose that, since we're being forced to do this, I might as well do this properly._

_I'm a Junior at this Godforsaken school. I made the wrestling team, I do well in school - pretty much_ everyone _is shocked by that - and I can make friends easily. Well, I say easily, it depends on what the person is like. Sometimes I can tell whether someone is alright or not during our first meeting, other times I can't._

_If you haven't already guessed, I'm a dude. I have a younger brother - he's four years younger than me and, I swear, the kid is an encyclopaedia of weirdness! Not kidding - he knows_ way _too much creepy stuff for a 12 year old! I live at home with the kid, plus my dad - I've had to take care of the kid a lot, since dad is always being dragged off to work for ridiculous amounts of time, which isn't his fault. My mom died when I was four, my brother was six months old - exactly six months old... I'll spare you the details - I don't really like to talk about it. I'm protective - of my brother, of my friends, of my family...pretty much of anyone I care about. All fights I get in here at the school is because_ someone _has made some comment about someone I care about and...I just can't take it._

_I suppose that's enough for the first letter... So just, you know, tell me about you and we'll see what happens._

_From, your new Pen Pal,_

_The Hunter._

As I looked up from signing off the letter, I noticed how everyone else was still scribbling away, some people looking so enthusiastic about being able to communicate with this unknown person within the school.

I swear, some people were such dorks.

* * *

**Castiel**

I had to wait until the end of the day for my English class - I had to wait to find out if my ' _Pen Pal_ ' would be open to talking with me... Knowing my luck, that wouldn't happen. For me, this was one of the best things the school had ever done - for someone who was so awkward and could hardly talk to people...for someone who had hardly any friends.

I wasn't a jock... I was the nerdy guy that sat in the front of the class - the one that put his head down and did the work, the one that was shoved into lockers and beaten up _at least_ once a day. For me, the Pen Pal system was a blessing!

I sat at my desk, leg bouncing up and down as I waited in anticipation for the letter. That was _if_ I had a letter... I mean, there was always the possibility that the person I had been paired with had decided not to write one at all - it was possible. If it was going to happen to anyone, it was going to be me. But I didn't know, because I had to wait until my teacher had explained how the lessons like this were going to work. I just wanted to _know_. I already knew how the lessons were going to work, everyone did - we would get the letter, we would read the letter and we would spend the rest of the lesson responding to that letter. For some reason, they felt the need to go over that with us.

It took a _long_ fifteen minutes for my teacher to explain - you would think that, being in a class of other students getting top grades, they would want to do the work. Unfortunately, this was not the case. But, fifteen minutes after the lesson had started, my teacher started handing out the letters. The letters at the top were the ones that had been handed in last - that much was obvious - and, with how long it was taking to even get to me, it didn't take a genius to figure out that I was near the end of not getting one at all. However, I was surprised to find that, when my teacher was down to the last letter, I was the only one without one. I couldn't help but smile when I saw it - compared to the other ones I had managed to glance at, mine was _far_ longer...

Reading through the letter, I was glad to find that, even though he did not want to participate, he would take this seriously and, you know, _actually_ participate. It made me hopeful that, maybe, we could get along - even just a little bit.

Even though I was the last and my letter was the longest, I was the first person to start writing my reply to ' _Hunter_ '. Suddenly, I wished that it wasn't anonymous.

_Dear The Hunter,_

_Like you, I am also a male Junior, though I am one of the youngest in our grade. One of my older brothers is also a Junior, though we are not twins - where he was born in September, I was born in August. Unlike most, I am fairly, I suppose excited is the right word to use here, for this process - you may excel at making friends with new people, I find it difficult and only had a couple of friends to speak of... Well, they're more_ acquaintances _than friends..._

Anyway _, as I have mentioned, I too am not an only child. I am the youngest of 5 brothers - the eldest being 24, my second brother being 21, my third brother being 19, my forth brother being 17 now and me being 16. My eldest brother takes care of us the most - much like you with your younger brother. However, instead of this being because our father is being dragged away by his work and has no control over it like yours, but because he up and left us all when I was only 10 years old. I don't remember much about him, only that he drank a lot after my mother committed suicide a few days before my sixth birthday..._

_I don't partake in any sports - many people would class me as a '_ nerd _', and they're probably right. Though I do take part in a few clubs around the school - I won't bore you with what they are... I enjoy school, mainly because I can get away from my arguing brothers, but also because I do well and I_ genuinely _like it. Is that sad? My 19 and 17 year old brothers make fun of me for enjoying and doing well at school, whilst the 24 year old is pleased I seem to want to_ do something _with my life - the 21 year old couldn't care any less, he only tries to make life as difficult for our eldest brother as possible..._

_If I haven't sent you running for the hills with this letter, then I very much look forward to your reply. And thank you - for being one of the ones to treat this properly. I honestly thought you wouldn't even write one... So, thank you._

_From, your new Pen Pal,_

_The Angel_

_P.S. I'm assuming by your Pen Name that you - and your father - are a Hunter. I'm sure, guessing by mine, you will be able to tell what I am._

Signing the letter with my extremely un-creative Pen Name, I looked up and out of the window to my right. My class room looked over the Quad, where some Angels and humans and supernatural creatures were skipping lessons - it was always a nice view though. As I stared out of the window, I couldn't help but wonder what ' _Hunter_ ' was like. If, maybe, I could actually have a friend, even if it _was_ just on paper.

I let myself imagine for a while, letting my mind drift slightly but, in the end, I had to shake my head and return to the real world. He would get bored of me or want nothing to do with me, just like everyone else.

* * *

**Dean**

The next day, we were given the replies from our Pen Pals - now we had the joy of writing the letters in our own time, handing them in by three thirty, so they didn't interfere with our lesson time.

I didn't get a chance to read the letter when it was handed to me, my teacher launching into the lesson but, what I saw of it, whoever it was had quite neat handwriting, neater than Sam's. I couldn't really concentrate with the lesson - for some reason, I just wanted to read the letter. I didn't even want to do this crappy thing, but I wanted to see what they had said, see what they were like.

I never thought the lesson would finish.

I didn't get a chance to read the letter until lunch, sitting at the table with Sam and our friends - Benny, Chuck, Kevin, Jess, Charlie, Jo, Ash, Garth, Becky and Barry - a mix of people from both of our grades. I read through the letter slowly, trying to get an idea of the guy as I read it, whilst Sam read it over my shoulder. It was amazing how open he was already, practically spilling his family life to me... I suppose, since he didn't really have friends, he didn't understand that that was something you kept for further down the line. The guy sounded alright, not a total weirdo... I suppose I could see myself getting along with him - it didn't matter if he was an Angel.

"You got paired with one of the Angels too?" Sam grinned, snatching the letter out of my hand.

"What do you think you're doing, Bitch?" I sighed, loosely grabbing his wrist as he tried to pull away.

"I think our Pen Pals are brothers!"

As Sam said this, he pulled out a letter of his own, handing it to me instead of my one. I, quickly, scanned through the letter, noting how the guy described his family in a similar way to my own Pen Pal...

"That's so weird..." Barry - one of Sam's best friends - commented, launching into how the school must have set it up like that on purpose.

It was strange how Sammy and I ended up with our Pen Pals being brothers - if they _were_ brothers... But they had to be, there was too much evidence to support the theory.

Handing Sam back his letter, I noticed how mine had now ended up in Jo's hands, the blonde scanning through the writing carefully, frowning slightly.

"Winchester, you better not screw this up for him." Jo told me, the threat of her mother finding out clear in her tone.

"Bite me." I muttered, rolling my eyes as I stole the page back.

_This was going to be interesting..._


	2. Day 2

**Cas**

As they had now changed how we would reply to our Pen Pals, I didn't get to look at the reply from my Pen Pal until the next day. Since my English lesson was at the end of the day, my teacher decided that we could stay behind until we had finished writing it - a good incentive for those who rebelled against the idea. But it was fine for me - I knew it wouldn't take me long to reply and I knew my brothers wouldn't notice much...

Unfolding the page, I found the fairly-neat-for-a-guy handwriting. I was surprised, again, at the length of the note, always thinking it was just going to be a sentence of ' _I'm not doing this_ '. Instead, it said:

_Dear The Angel,_

_I may not be '_ excited _' for this but I guess I can learn to like it. I mean, you don't seem like a dick...and you don't seem to be a crazy person - I dunno, maybe this'll go well. I get it - finding it difficult to make friends, I mean. Technically, I only have two people in our grade I'm friends with, the others are my brother and my brother's friends - two of the girls we grew up with and are, pretty much, like the sisters we never wanted. I find it difficult to open up to people trust them - that's why I'm finding it weird that I'm telling you this. I guess, when I said 'friend', I meant a useful ally._

_I was born in January, so I'm kind of in the middle - must suck being the baby though, in both school and the family. My brother was born four years after me in May... I hate that the kid has seen most of the things he's seen. He was supposed to believe in Santa and the Tooth Fairy and all that crap were good, not evil things that wanted to kill him. It sucks, you know? I mean, Angels - Angels are cool; when my mom was trying to get me to sleep, when I was a kid, she would always tell me that Angels were watching over me. And, between you and me? I miss her. I haven't cried about my mom's death because, at the time, I didn't understand and someone had to be strong for my dad and the kid - if I cry about it now, it'll be seen as a weakness...I can't let that happen._

_Having four brothers must be tough, man. I mean, I can handle mine just fine, but four of him? I don't know if I could cope! I'm sorry about your dad, he sounds like a dick - no offence - but you're better off without him, if I'm being honest, and at least your brothers are there to look out for you. And, about your mom... I don't know why she did it, I'm sure there was some reason for it, but I'm sorry. It sucks. You know the saying - every little boy needs his dad and every little girl needs her mom? I guess, whoever made that saying up, never knew that it could be the other way round too - that every little girl needs her dad and every little boy needs his mom. I mean, my brother never knew our mom and, sure, he turned out fine...but it's like he's missing a part of himself that he'll never get to meet, you know?_

_Sorry, I've just... I've thought about this a lot and I've never been able to tell anyone. I guess, since we don't know who the other is, it makes this a lot easier._

_Wrestling is the only sport I take part in and, hey, I don't mind hearing about what you do. You have to listen - read? - to me going on about all of my stuff, so it's only fair that you get to talk about what you do. And, you may be a 'nerd' but my brother's a nerd, some of my friends are nerds. I'm not one of these asshole jocks that pick on people because they're: easy targets, smart, etc. I'm a hunter, I help those who can't help themselves - I help people... I don't want to be the one causing that pain, you know. So, you can confide in me, dude - I'm a pretty good listener...reader?_

_My brother likes school too so, no, it's not sad. That's pretty cool. And it sucks that your brother fight - the 21 year old sounds like a total bag of dicks! And the 19 and 17 year old? don't listen to them - they're obviously jealous of your intelligence and feel threatened. I'm sure they love you all the same._

_I promise you, I will do this right - and there's no need to thank me. Honestly, with the way this is going, I'm quite glad I've done this. You seem pretty cool, man. Maybe, one day in the future, we could meet - never know, we could become good friends._

_From,_

_The Hunter_

_P.S I think your 17 year old brother and my brother are Pen Pals - my brother has '_ creatively _' named himself_ The Researcher _and, I think, your brother is_ The Trickster _? I dunno, my brother mentioned that it was possible and I just...yeah... Have a good day and stuff..._

This letter was longer than the other one. _Far longer_... That alone made me smile. The fact that he could sympathise...empathise. That had never happened before.

* * *

I was home by three forty five that afternoon - I didn't live too far away, so it wasn't a huge effort from me. Technically, I didn't even have to come home... I mean, it wasn't like anyone would notice.

Gabriel would be hanging out with his friends again. Balthazar was too busy with college. Lucifer was...well, he would be doing whatever Lucifer did. Michael would be working in his study at home, which connected to his bedroom. I could do, pretty much, anything I wanted to do and they would be none the wiser. I could stay out all night - and not come back in the morning - and they wouldn't know until it was time I had to leave for school.

No one knew of my home life, well, not the fact the my brothers never knew where I was, just that my parents weren't around. My Pen Pal was the first person to know exactly why... I knew I was the kind of person that shared too quickly. I want good in social situations and I wasn't _that_ good at knowing what I shouldn't say during a first meeting. It was quite a hassle.

Anyway, I was at home, sitting on the couch with my laptop, typing up the homework I was given for my creative writing class. It was the only thing I could do really - do homework. I didn't have anyone to talk to, didn't have anyone to hang out with... It was at that moment that I wished I had another way to contact _The Hunter_ , just so I could have some company...

I suppose I could have flew somewhere interesting - England or Cyprus... - I could have gone anywhere if I wanted, but I didn't. Michael wouldn't like it if I did. Gabriel and Balthazar would whine at me if they heard me say that, saying that I needed to break the rules at some point in my life. How could I when there were consequences.

 _Maybe one day_...

Sitting there, I turned my focus back to my Pen Pal - a happy subject for me. I started to wonder what he looked like, what his name was. Sometimes, I viewed it as a downside, not knowing exactly who he was, yet other times it was a blessing. If he knew who I was... I was telling the truth when I said I had no friends, merely acquaintances. No one wanted to be friends with someone at the bottom of the social food chain. Especially when that someone was me. Sighing, I wondered how he would react. The way he was on paper made me think that he wouldn't mind who I was, would want to know me anyway... But that had never happened before. Why would he want to?

* * *

Gabriel wasn't home until dinner that evening, walking through the door seconds before Michael came into the living room from the kitchen. Our eldest brother said nothing as Gabriel walked in. He said nothing as Lucifer and Balthazar came in through the back door. No one said anything, really.

"Gabriel?" I asked, quietly, as my brother sat down on the couch with me. "What was it your Pen Pal called himself?"

My brother turned towards me slightly, grinning a little as he turned his face towards the ceiling.

"Little mite goes by _The Researcher_. Kid's smart, you'd get along well." he chuckled. "Why?"

"Much like us, our Pen Pals are brothers." I shrugged. "Mine mentioned it in his last letter, I thought I would inform you."

Gabriel was surprised at this, frowning slightly as he moved his gaze from the ceiling to me. He didn't say anything, just stared at me for a moment.

 _"Gabriel, Castiel, come eat!"_ Lucifer yelled, earning a smack around the head from Michael - if the dull thump was anything to go by.

This is what happened in the house. Lucifer would somehow annoy Michael, so Michael would hit him. Gabriel would annoy Balthazar, so Balthazar would take a leaf out of Michael's book and hit him. All four of my brothers did that to each other. I was the only one that didn't get hit or do the hitting. I adamantly refused to assault one of my brothers, yet I didn't know the reason for them refraining to treat me like they did each other.

"C'mon, Cassie. Grubs up." Gabriel grinned, jumping up and heading to the kitchen. "Hope there's candy..."

Reluctantly, I followed him towards the kitchen; dinner was going to end how it always did.

* * *

I ended up going to my room around halfway through dinner - it was an all new record for my brothers. None of them realised, to be honest I wondered if they even cared. Gabriel used to, I knew that for a fact - he would follow me up to my room and make sure I was alright, keeping me company until I fell asleep. Then we were Freshmen and he turned fourteen.

Before my dad turned to drinking, before my mother killed herself, my brothers used to be closer than anything. They used to love each other, not hate each other with every fibre of their beings. Michael would tell Balthazar, Gabriel and me stories, and help all four of us with our homework; Lucifer would help Michael look after us when mother and father were working, or just so they could have a night off; Balthazar would get his work done as quickly as possible so he could spend time with us all; Gabriel used to look forward to coming home...

That ended when mother killed herself. From that day onwards, everything started to fall apart... Everyone tried at first - tried to keep everything the same... Lucifer was eleven when this happened - Michael fourteen - and, when father started drinking, Michael stood up and started to act like a parent to us. Lucifer, on the cusp of becoming a teenager didn't take well to this - he rebelled and fought against everything. Since then... Since then, nothing had been the same.

I knew there were reasons as to why they kept me out of their hit-my-brother-because-he's-annoying thing, one of them probably being so they don't hurt me since I was the youngest - since mother had ended her life in my room, since father had left on my birthday. They didn't realise that, by hating and fighting with each other, they were hurting me badly.

I curled up into a ball on my bed, dragging the bed covers over me, willing myself not to cry. When father was far too drunk to know what was going on, sometimes he would hit me and tell me crying was for the weak... I didn't want to be weak. After father left, I didn't cry. I hadn't cried since the night before my tenth birthday... I remembered my brothers telling me it was alright to cry, that it wasn't a sign of weakness. But I couldn't do it. I wanted to prove our father wrong, wanted to prove that I _could_ be strong. Instead of crying, however, I pulled out the two letters I had from _The Hunter_ so far and re-read them.

At least I had someone I could talk to.


	3. Texting

**Dean**

As we talked more, _The Angel_ and I actually became quite good friends. It got to the point where I was quickly considering him my best friend and I hadn't even met him. Well, at least, not _yet_.

He had told me more about his family, told me about all the shit that happens and had happened... It angered me, knowing that someone I considered a friend was hurting and there was nothing I could do to help him right now... It was difficult, only being able to talk to him every so often - I wished there was another way to do it, especially when I helped dad on hunts or on weekends.

That's why, when it came to the second to last day before the Christmas holidays, I wrote this as my letter to him:

_Dear The Angel,_

_1-866-907-3235 - so we can keep in touch. Can I have yours? If not then...Merry Christmas._

_From,_

_The Hunter._

_P.S. I hope I can have your cell number, I want to keep talking to you._

For the rest of the day I was left wondering. I knew the guy was shy - hell, even though he was quick to tell me about his parents, it took a while for him to open up to me - so I didn't know what he was going to do. I was left wondering.

I was left wondering until the next day when I received his reply, which he would get at the end of the day - we had swapped timetables early on, just so we knew when each other would get the letters. I knew I wasn't supposed to look at his reply in class, I knew I was supposed to be paying attention to the lesson... But I _had_ to know.

I unfolded the page, the letter containing only three things: my pen name, his pen name and his number.

No one had the ability to understand how happy this had made me. Though, to be honest, I think they were just happy I was in a good mood.

* * *

"Dean, do you think will dad be home for Christmas?" Sam asked as we walked into our house.

It was a question Sam had asked every year and I never knew what to say to him. Some years dad would be, his hunt would take so long and he'd go offline for a few days so he could spend time with us... Other years we weren't so lucky. Dad always tried his hardest and he called every day he was away to check in on us, not to mention he always made up for it when he got home.

"I dunno, Sammy." I sighed. "We'll have to wait for dad to call."

"I hope he is... I miss him." Sam frowned, kicking off his shoes by the door and hanging his backpack on his hook.

"So do I, kid. So do I..."

Ruffling Sam's hair, I hung my jacket and bag on my hook, walking into the kitchen as he made his way into the living room. It was a kind of routine when we came home - I would grab something to drink and snacks, whilst Sam put on a movie for us to watch and, since we were on holiday and had no homework, we didn't have to worry with how long we spent. Whilst I waited for the popcorn, I took out my cell phone, texting him, already having put his number in.

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 3:04pm -** _ **Me:** _Nice to finally be able to talk to you outside of school ;)_

I didn't expect a quick reply so I placed my phone back in my pocket, moving the popcorn into a large bowl and grabbing the cans of cola before joining Sam in the living room.

"Is Bobby coming over this year?" Sam asked as I walked back into the living room, taking the can I held out for him.

"Probably." I replied. "I'm gonna go change."

"Oooo, good idea!"

The kid ran out of the living room, shouting back a quick ' _race you_ ' as he went. I liked how, despite everything we had seen over the years, Sam could still act like a kid... It was one of the only things that kept me smiling. I followed him slowly, giving him the illusion that he could beat me - it's what older brothers were supposed to do. It was as I walked after Sam that my phone went off.

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 3:09pm -** _ **Angel:** _I concur. It will be nice to talk to you at any time._

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 3:10pm -** _ **Me:** _Exactly! And, hey, if your brother get to much, then talk to me._

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 3:11pm -** _ **Angel:** _As long as you're sure I won't be a bother..._

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 3:12pm -** _ **Me:** _Dude, you won't be a bother! I want to help, even if that's just by talk to you._

He didn't reply after that - in fact, he didn't reply until late that night. But, as I looked over the last text he sent me, I wondered what must have happened for him to feel like he would be a bother. It was sad that he thought that about himself...

 _The first thing I'm going to do when I meet him is hug him_.

* * *

That night, Sam and I ended up making a fort in the living room - on the kids insistence - using a range of blankets and pillows and the things from our beds to pad it out. Sam even went as far as to grab a set of white Christmas lights from a box upstairs and hang them around the outside of our fort, just so there was a little bit of light. Then - because Sam was still growing and, well, I liked food - we ended up having pizza _and_ Chinese for dinner, along with the burgers and pie I had made. We had food and drink in front of us, barricading us in - well, not literally, there were such things as bathroom breaks.

It was a good thing that dad left us some money and I had a load left over from the odd jobs I did around the town during the summer. Besides, having a range of rood was the best thing to do when you have two guys in the house that can't decide on what they want to eat.

Sam and I had a blast, watching as many movies as we could, talking along with many of the lines. We would do this a lot during the holidays, if it was just the two of us in the house. It was a tradition really, one that I started when Sam was only three years old - I was seven, Bobby was looking after us and Sam had a nightmare...the only thing I could think of to do was to build a fort, bundle Sammy inside and put on Disney movies. It worked like a charm.

"Hey, Dean?" he asked as he changed the movie at, around, half ten. "You realise your phone keeps vibrating, right?"

As I unlocked my cell, I realised that I had five missed text messages. Frowning, I wondered how I didn't notice...

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 10:31pm -** _ **Dad:** _Hey, kiddo. I've finished up the case, but I've caught wind of one a little closer to home. It's just a simple salt and burn, shouldn't take me long - should be back by Christmas Eve. See you and Sam soon._

"Looks like dad'll be home for Christmas, Sammy." I grinned, turning my phone round so the kid could take a look.

The grin on his face said it all really...

Smiling to myself, I turned back to my messages, taking a look at the other four. My face dropped as soon as I realised who I had missed them from:

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 8:19pm -** _ **Angel:** _Sorry, I would have replied earlier but my eldest brother was in a bad mood._

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 8:54pm -** _ **Angel:** _I know you're probably busy, but can we talk?_

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 9:29pm -** _ **Angel:** _My brothers are fighting again and... Can you please reply to me?_

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 10:04pm -** _ **Angel:** _I'm sorry. I'll leave you alone now._

"Shit." I muttered.

I started typing as fast as I could, trying to get a reply to him as fast as I could - _how could I be so_ stupid!

"Dean?" Sam frowned. "Dean? What's wrong?"

I didn't reply, I had to focus on one thing and, at that moment, _The Angel_ needed me. What kind of friend was I? I explained to him why I hadn't replied, why I hadn't heard my phone go off. I kept apologising, something I rarely did with anyone... I asked him what had happened and _hoped_ he wouldn't hate me too much.

"Dean...?" Sam asked, quietly.

Turning to look at my little brother after I hit send, I could see the worried and slightly panicked look in his eyes. Sighing slightly, I slumped down on the floor of our makeshift fort, dragging the kid down and closer to me, ruffling his hair slightly - and I told him. I told him how my Pen Pal and I swapped numbers. I told him about how his brothers always fought. I told him everything I could, everything I thought _his_ Pen Pal must have told him. I told him how I had missed four texts from a friend that needed my help since eight nineteen that evening and I had only _just_ gotten back to him.

"It's not your fault, Dean." he said. "The movies were loud, you wouldn't have heard it."

"That's not the point, Sammy." I sighed.

Everything was silent for a moment - the movie not playing, my phone not buzzing and neither of us saying a word. Suddenly I understood what people meant by the silence being so loud...

* * *

It wasn't until ten forty eight that I got a reply. I had made sure to keep an eye on my phone, turning the sound up slightly so I could hear when a message came through. As soon as my phone went off, I was on it like a hawk.

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 10:45pm -** _ **Angel:** _It's fine - I'm sorry, I just assumed you did want to talk anymore... Everything's alright now - well, I suppose I could call it alright. Two of my brothers are staying with friends for the night, my 21 year old brother has gone out drinking, whilst the eldest has locked himself in his room for the night. I honestly thought someone was going to get hurt..._

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 10:50pm -** _ **Me:** _I would never do that, dude - I like talking to you. I'm sorry that your brothers are such dicks and you can't get away, I swear that, if you ever feel comfortable with it, after we meet you can to my place any time. I think you would like hanging out with my brother and me - we built a fort and are watching movies in the fort! If they ever do start hurting each other, I want you to call me. Not text me, CALL me, and I'll come pick you up._

_**Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 10:51pm -**_ **Angel:** Thank you, truly.

 _ **Thursday, December 18th 2014 - 10:52pm -**_ **Me:** Anytime, man, anytime.

I don't think I had ever meant something more.


	4. Meeting

**Cas**

_The Hunter_ and I became brilliant friends since we started talking to each other back at the beginning of the school year. We had spoken by letter and/or text every day since then, becoming closer than I ever thought we would. And, now, it was the first day of Spring break and I was actually going to be able to meet him. It had taken me a while to gather up the courage to agree to meet him. It took many conversations until he could convince me that it would be fine. Over the months I had opened up to him about my worries, as well as many other things, but he had assured me that he wouldn't treat me differently after we met properly.

Who was I to disagree when every promised he had made since we started talking he had kept?

So, that's why, on Monday, March 24th 2014, I was headed to the local park to meet up with him. It had been scarily easy getting away from my brothers, especially since Michael was actually in the living room for once, instead of his office. I expected him to put up at least a little bit of a fight...but no. _Nothing_. Wasn't that just a punch in the gut?

 _ **Monday, March 24th 2014 - 11:45am -**_ **Me:** _How will I know it's you?_

 _ **Monday, March 24th 2014 - 11:46am -**_ **Hunter:** _I'll be the only seventeen year old guy there, plus the only one wearing a leather jacket ;)_

_**Monday, March 24th 2014 - 11:47am -** _ **Me:** _I still don't see the point of the 'winky face'._

_**Monday, March 24th 2014 - 11:48am -**_ **Hunter:** _It's called an emoji, dude. People use emojis all the time XD_

 _ **Monday, March 24th 2014 - 11:49am -**_ **Me:** _But surely that 'emoji' is a form of flirtation? Are you using it as a form of flirtation?_

 _ **Monday, March 24th 2014 - 11:50am -**_ **Hunter:** _Just get your ass here, man :P_

I was standing outside the park when I received his reply, scanning the area to see if I could catch a glimpse of who he was. And I did, I just didn't see his face considering his back was to me from where he was sitting on a bench. So, taking a deep breath, I started to make my way towards the bench. Of course, that meant I didn't see who it was until I reached the bench, meaning that when I saw _Dean Winchester_ , the most popular guy in school, sitting there, I couldn't run away.

"Castiel Novak?" Dean asked, surprise colouring his tone even as he smiled.

Now, the fact that he seemed happy that it was me shocked me enough, but something else completely flawed me...

"You know my name?" I frowned, eyes wide. "How do _you_ know _my_ name?"

"You're kidding, right?" Dean grinned. "We live opposite each other, our moms used to be best friends, and I've been trying to be your friend since first grade - every time I tried you would just walk away before I could say anything."

"I thought you were going to be like the others..."

Instead of saying anything, though, Dean simply stood up and hugged me. I stood there, frozen, not knowing what to do for a while, but it didn't take long for him to let me go.

"Well, you can't run away from me this time, Cas." Dean grinned.

This was _not_ how I expected any of this to go...

* * *

It amazed me how, even though Dean had found out who I was, we still managed to be friends. It was as if we knew it had been each other this whole time. It was amazing, yet terrifying... Much to Dean's dismay, I wasn't able to meet his brother, Sam - since Sam didn't know Gabriel was his Pen Pal and Gabriel didn't know I had met mine. But it was fine, we managed for the time being.

It was safe to say that I never thought Dean Winchester would be my friend.

It was a shame that Sam couldn't know yet, especially since my brothers were being far worse than usual. Lucifer seemed to be a bigger pain as days went on and I spent more time in my room than usual. But, again, no one noticed. But I had Dean to talk to. I had him to text or call if things got bad and he would make me smile and laugh.

And then came the day _it_ happened.

I was sitting downstairs, on a Saturday, for the first time in weeks since I had met Dean face to face, watching some random programme on TV, just for the hell of it. Everything had been rather quite thus far, for the first time in a long time... As per usual, Dean and I were talking via text message, something that had caught Gabriel's eye a few days before - not that he said anything about it. It seemed like a peaceful - for once - Saturday.

Then it all kicked off. I couldn't understand what was being said but, in a blink of an eye, Lucifer had Michael pinned to a wall, hand around his neck. Both were bleeding, crashing into everything as they fought each other off... Neither of them noticed me there.

As Michael got out of Lucifer's grasp, the youngest of the two picked up a lamp from the nearest table, launching it at our older brother. Panicked, I leaped out of the way as fast as I could, but I was still struck as the shards flew around the room. My forehead and arms were bleeding as my brothers continued to fight, more objects being thrown around - most of them veering off in my direction. As soon as I had control of my limbs again, I grabbed my phone and ' _zapped_ ' - as Dean called it - upstairs and into my room.

I could still hear the yelling and the screaming, the bangs and the crashes... This was the first time in my life that I had truly been scared of my brothers. So I did the only thing I could think of - call Dean.

 _"Hey, Cas!"_ Dean said, cheerfully, blissfully unaware.

"Dean, please, I need to get out of here! Can I come over?" I whispered, just in case my brothers could hear me.

_"What's wrong?"_

"Michael and Lucifer, they-"

I didn't get to finish my sentence, the piecing scream cluing my friend in on what was happening.

"Please, Dean..." I begged.

For a moment, Dean was silent. No sound was coming from his end of the phone, not even a sound from his brother like there usually was.

 _"Can you zap out?"_ he asked, sounding as if his jaw was clenched.

"I-I think so?" I replied, doubtfully.

_"I want you to try, Cas. I'll open the front door."_

I hung up the phone before I flew over the street to the Winchesters home - I could see the silhouettes of my brothers as they fought, completely unaware of what was happening. The door behind my opened with a bang, a hand grabbing my arm as it dragged me inside, closing quickly. The hand turned my around, but I didn't have long to orientate myself before I was encased tightly in someone's arms. I didn't fight it, in fact, I moved closer into the person - Dean, obviously - that had their arms around me.

I explained to Dean what had happened and how I was the only one in the house with Michael and Lucifer. He had adamantly refused to let me go back home that night, something I happily agreed to - though I had to refrain Dean from calling the police on my brothers...this was only the _first_ time it had happened, after all. Even though he wasn't happy about that, he agreed for now.

"What about your father? And Sam?" I asked, as he led me to the couch.

"Dad took Sammy to our Uncle Bobby's." Dean shrugged. "It's, about, five and a half hours away, so they left last night."

"When will they be back?"

"Tomorrow afternoon. Don't worry, I'll fill dad in - he'll be fine."

I nodded slowly, feeling uncomfortable, for the first time, around Dean. I just didn't know what to do with myself, didn't know what I should say... But, as Dean put his arm around me, I realised that, maybe, I didn't have to know.

* * *

It was getting late when we both decided it would be a good time to go to sleep. I tried to say I would sleep on the couch or, at least in a different room, but Dean was having none of it. It confused me a little - why would Dean want me in his room? But I shrugged it off and followed the young hunter into his room.

Using my Grace, I had brought some of my things over from my room - clothes, pyjamas, laptop, toothbrush, etc - just so I didn't have to _physically_ go back over there. I knew I shouldn't use my Grace for such things - if Michael knew, he wouldn't be very happy - but, as Dean said, what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

"Are you positive that this is alright Dean?" I asked as he walked out of his en-suite bathroom.

"Yeah, Cas." Dean chuckled. "It's fine."

We laid side by side in Dean's bed, shoulders touching as we both lay on our backs.

"You're the first person to give me a nickname I like." I told him. "Balthazar and Gabriel, they call me _Cassie_... I hate it when they do that."

"What about Michael and Lucifer?" Dean asked, quietly.

"They just call me Castiel. I think Michael just hates nicknames as a whole, and Lucifer only uses nicknames for Michael because it annoys him."

"Well, you'll always be Cas to me."

I smiled slightly, the action, I realised, occurring more the more time I spent with Dean. In all honesty, after my mother killed herself, I thought I had lost the ability to smile. I didn't remember a time after that that I had actually smiled until Dean came along...

"Dean?" I whispered after a few moments of silence.

"Yeah, Cas?" Dean whispered back.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"Everything."

I kept staring up at the ceiling, but I felt when Dean moved in the bed. The young hunter propped himself up on his elbow, looking down on me - even in the dark I could make out the green eyes and perfect smile.

"Don be, Cas." he said, softly.

Before I could say anything, something soft and warm was over my mouth. I felt Dean's nose against mine, his hair brushing my forehead. As quickly as the feeling came, it was gone again - Dean was back to lying beside me. Of course, this time, Dean dragged me closer to his side, my head coming to rest on his chest and my hand on his stomach.

It was, by far, the _best_ night's sleep I had had in years.


	5. Family

**Cas**

I thought that that kiss would be the only one, that nothing would come of it... I was happy that I was wrong. It happened again in the morning and all throughout the day until Dean's father and brother got home - but, even then, he would stay close to me, keeping an arm around me.

Dean had explained to his father who I was and why I was in the house when he arrived home with Sam, Sunday afternoon - apparently they had gotten caught in horrible traffic on the way home from...somewhere, so they stayed the night at a motel.

John Winchester was, surprisingly, a nice man. Yes, he was depressed from the death of his wife, but it was obvious that he loved his sons dearly. As well as allowing me to stay at his home for a few nights, John even went over to my home to give my brothers ' _a talking to_ '. It eased me to know that my brothers would never harm a human, especially when many others were around as witnesses...but I didn't know how they were going to take this ' _talking to_ '.

Sam Winchester was not an idiot, he was far from it. It took him mere seconds for him to figure out that I was Dean's Pen Pal. It took him less time to then figure out Gabriel was his - of course, he then berated himself for not realising sooner, considering Gabriel was notoriously known at the school for his pranks. The twelve year old took it well, I will say - in fact, he seemed rather pleased.

It was as I thought that, whilst watching a movie with Dean and Sam, that my phone went off, the song _The Candy Man Can_ from _Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory_ playing quietly - I heard the song when I was a child and I had always thought of Gabriel when I heard it.

"Hello, Gabriel." I said, answering the phone, as Sam paused the film.

 _"Cassie, are you alright?! Balth and I just heard what happened!"_ Gabriel panted down the speaker, his voice full of panic.

"I'm fine, I'm not in the house now."

_"I know you aren't! Where the hell are you?!"_

"At the Winchesters..."

The line went dead as soon as I told him. Frowning slightly, I turned to the Winchester brothers, only to notice their startled expressions. Frowning even more, I followed their line of sight to the living room door, finding Gabriel and Balthazar with their backs to me, seeming confused.

I stood up as they turned around, the look of relief on their faces obvious even to _me_. For the first time in a while, the two youngest of my four older brothers rushed forward, hugging me to them. I could hear the erratic beating of their hearts, the fear clear in their racing heart beats. I didn't think that would happen... Instead of anything, I hugged my brothers back, only then realising just how much I had missed the contact from them. I wondered if they had too, wondered if that was why they were holding me to them for far longer than necessary. Over their shoulders, Dean and Sam seemed just as surprised as me, watching my brothers carefully. Although, out of the two hunters, Dean was the only one to know the truth about _all_ of my brothers, how all of them were so distant.

Hesitantly, I delved into the minds of my brothers, just to get an idea of what was going through their heads at this moment... I was pleasantly surprised as to what I heard. Gabriel was thinking how he was stupid to think I would be better off without him getting in the way, thinking that the reason Michael and Lucifer had left me alone was because Gabriel wasn't getting me into trouble. Balthazar, on the other hand, was thinking how he knew he should have gotten guardianship over Gabriel and I when he turned eighteen and bought an apartment, that way the three of could be rid of our elder brothers and their fighting. I never knew that that was what they had been thinking over the years... I thought they just didn't care...

Obviously, I was wrong.

* * *

**Dean**

Cas spent a lot of the day talking to Gabriel and Balthazar, filling them in on what had happened over at their house and how dad was letting crash at our place for a few nights. Both guys thought that was a great idea - Balthazar particularly and asked dad if he would mind Gabriel staying too. Of course, Balthazar explained why - he was going to fight for guardianship over his two younger brothers. All he needed was an apartment big enough for the three of them - he already had a job that paid him well whilst at Lawrence University, so he was sorted on the financial front. Dad even offered to help find the apartment and help him with the legal stuff when it came to guardianship.

Once Balthazar and dad had finished talking - and dad had disappeared outside again - Cas got round to introducing his brothers to Sammy and me. Of course, it didn't take long for Gabriel to put two and two together, realising that Sam was actually _The Researcher_. He looked just as happy as Sam had when he found out.

"So, _you're_ the reason our little Cassie has been _glued_ to his phone." Balthazar smirked.

"Damn, right." I grinned, sliding my arm around Cas' back.

Cas' brothers didn't miss the movement, their eyes watching carefully before looking between Cas and me. Gabriel seemed to be the first to connect it.

"Aw, Cassie's got a boyfriend." the second youngest Novak brother sang.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Cas' face getting redder, the small amount of colour making him look far younger.

"Yeah he has, got a problem with that?" I countered, raising an eyebrow.

"None at all." Balthazar smiled. "Just know that, if you hurt him, you will regret it."

"That won't be a problem."

Before anything else could be said, dad's head popped around the doorframe, catching Balthazar's gaze before he spoke.

"You won't be staying with those two will you?" dad asked, nodding towards our front door.

"Of course not, I only go back there for these Gabriel and Cassie. " Balthazar chuckled. " I have a room on campus I can stay in for the time being. Which reminds me, I must be getting back. Thank you, Mr Winchester."

Balthazar shook dad's hand and was gone in a blink of an eye. Dad's shock was obvious, no matter how well concealed it was, but he shook it off fairly quickly.

"So, Chinese for dinner?" dad grinned.


	6. First Date

**Dean**

Gabriel and Cas didn't stay at our house for long - thanks to my dad, it was easy for Balthazar to get a three bed-roomed apartment, as well as guardianship over his younger brothers. The flat wasn't too far away, only five minutes by car and, about, ten or fifteen minutes by foot. The first night they spent there, Cas kept sending me pictures of what every room looked like at every possible angle... It was actually - _can't believe I'm going to say this_ \- cute how excited he was, especially when he realised he could decorate his bedroom however he wanted, without having to worry about whether or not his brother would find it acceptable.

Of course, like the good boyfriend I am, I offered my services to help paint and construct the different cabinets that he would need, what with all his books - even though he had, jokingly, said he was going to abuse his power, I knew that I would have to integrate myself into the work, because he would never ask for my help.

By the middle of the summer, the three Novak brothers had fully moved into their apartment, everything furnished and personalised. And, even though none of them wanted anything to do with Michael and Lucifer, all three had agreed to meet the two - separately, not both of them together - at least once every week - they had both done time for assault but, since they were Archangels, they weren't held for long. However, they weren't allowed within twenty feet of each other, or allowed to be around their brothers at the same time. It was the safest thing for all of them and Cas was _definitely_ doing a lot better.

It had taken me a long while to convince Cas that crying didn't make you weak - yes, I was kind of a hypocrite, but that was only where my mom was involved. I could openly admit that I had cried, the last time being...well...ok, I couldn't remember the last time, but I _had_ cried, even as a teenager. But, luckily, with the help of Sam - the big girl - and Cas' brothers, we got him to forget about what his dad said, got him to forget about worrying what Michael would say if the guy ever pulled his head out of his ass... We got him to be _Cas_. Just Cas.

"I think Sam's in love with Gabriel." I muttered into Cas' ear as we sat in the fort we had made with Sam.

Cas always came round every other weekend, spending on weekend at my place and spending the other at what he was now comfortable with calling home. We were watching Disney movies of Cas' insistence as my Angel sat between my legs, leaning back against my chest, whilst my baby brother slept deeply near us. I always loved having Cas close to me, these was just something so different from him compared to everybody else I had dated... It wasn't the fact that he was another guy - the whole school knew I was openly bisexual, so me dating another guy didn't come as a shock to them, that guy being _Cas_ , however, _was_ a shock - one they got over fairly quickly, thank God.

"Well, I'm fairly sure Gabriel feels the same towards Sam." Cas replied, airily, dragging my arms further around him as he moved to look at me. "Is that really a surprise?"

"After everything since them finding out they were each other's Pen Pals? No." I grinned. "But if Gabriel tries _anything_ until Sammy is sixteen, I will castrate him."

"When Sam's sixteen, Gabriel will be twenty - four months away from being twenty one."

"They can start _dating_ when Sam's sixteen. Anything gross that I don't want to think about my baby brother doing has to wait until Sammy is, _at least_ , eighteen."

I could feel Cas laughing, the shaking of his body giving it away. I loved making him laugh, the sight seeming so rare to begin with, as well as seeing him smile... Ever since moving, it had been a lot easier.

"I'll help you enforce these rules." Cas grinned, chuckling.

It wasn't long before Cas fell asleep peacefully against me, snoring lightly. I found it amazing how relaxed he was, how he seemed to trust Sam and me enough that he was comfortable to fall asleep. I always wondered how people could do that - feel so relaxed around people that they could fall asleep... It took me a while before I could do that.

As I watched the Angel - _my_ Angel - sleep, I made the decision there and then that he deserved what society classed as a ' _normal date_ '. I mean, I had found out pretty quickly that Cas enjoyed, what he called, ' _human customs_ '. What better than a proper, cliché date?

"That's our plans sorted from tomorrow." I whispered to myself.

* * *

The next morning, around ten o'clock, I had managed to wake Cas up and get him dressed, all without disturbing my brother. We hadn't had a day, just the two of us, since the day he escaped Michael and Lucifer's fighting to come to my place for the first time... It was frustrating as hell and I _should_ have thought about this sooner, but it was better late than never. It was surprisingly easy to get Cas to cooperate - usually, at the weekend, you couldn't get him up out of bed until, at least, midday. I had no idea why he wasn't being so difficult now.

"Dean, where are we going?" he asked as I dragged him upstairs so we could change.

"Out." I grinned.

"Yes, I know that. But _where_."

Rolling my eyes, I turned towards the Angel after I closed the door to my room, dragging him closer to me as I encircled my arms around his waist. I had noticed very quickly that Cas had managed to break all of my touchy-feely barriers completely. No one had ever been able to do that, but Cas had. Cas had managed to do that long before we had met face to face, long before we had _actually_ gotten together. Honestly, I had never thought anyone would have been able to do that... Sometimes I wondered how Cas had but, then, I realised I didn't care. I realised that I was happy anyway.

"Hurry up and you'll see." I chuckled, resting my forehead against his. "You'll like it, I promise."

Cas tried to fight a smile, not that he was ever able to. It sounded girlie and I would never admit it out loud, but I loved his smile. Even though it seemed to come easily to him, I never saw his smile enough... God, I sounded like a lovesick teenager.

"Fine, but it better be great." he joked before strolling into my en-suite with his backpack.

Over the months, Cas had gotten better at his humour, gotten better at understanding human things. He seemed to love learning about everything human - why we did certain things, what they meant. I had to admit that, at first, I thought it would be annoying - thought that, since he had lived among humans his whole life, he should know - but I actually quite enjoyed it.

"Oh, it will be." I called after him, turning to my closet to get dressed myself.

* * *

I should have seen it coming.

I should have seen _something_ like this coming.

I mean, come on, it was obvious that something was going to mess up my plans for the day.

Dad had caught wind of a job in Chicago. He didn't know how long he would be gone for and he didn't want Sam left alone in the house. Now, Cas was refusing to wait until my dad got back from his hunt to find out what I had planned - we didn't know when that would be. So, the only solution? Take the kid with us. Not _only_ this, but as soon as we were loading ourselves into my car, _Gabriel_ decided he would drop by. In the end he, somehow, managed to invite himself along, sliding into the back of my Impala with Sam...

Obviously, I had imagined it all going differently.

Now Cas and I were on a car journey that would take, about, thirty eight minutes, to go on a date I had planned, with our brothers - a thirteen and a seventeen year old - _flirting_ in the back of my car. It was one of the creepiest things I had faced so far and, scarily, it was feeling like a double date. Now wasn't _that_ creepy as fuck?

"So, Deano, what made you decide to go to a beach?" Gabriel grinned, leaning forward in his seat during a lull in conversation.

"We're going to a beach?" Cas asked, frowning slightly.

"I'm going to kill you." I seethes, glaring at Gabriel in the mirror.

There was silence as Gabriel looked back and forth between his younger brother and me, the smile on his face slowly dropping.

"I'm going to take a wild guess and say this was a surprise for Cassie?" Gabriel chuckled nervously.

"Well done, Einstein." I growled, tightening my hands around the steering wheel.

No one understood how much I wanted to kick Gabriel onto the side of the road.

* * *

As soon as we pulled into the parking lot at Bloomington Beach, Clinton, I made it very clear that I wanted Gabriel and Sam to disappear for the rest of the day, until I called them to come back to the car so we could go home - of course, I told Gabriel that he was to stay with Sam the whole time, unless he wanted me to skin him alive with an Angel blade.

"Deano, I can fly the squirt back if we're not done hanging out. Just worry about you and Cassie for the day." the Trickster grinned.

Before I could reply, he clicked his fingers and he and Sam were gone. As I glared at the space the elder Angel had stood, I didn't realise that Cas had moved - not until he was standing next to me, slipping his hand into mine. Turning to look at him, I noticed a small, shy smile on his face, a small spark in his dark blue eyes.

"The beach?" he asked as his smile grew, looking for some reasoning.

"Well... We haven't really had a first date, have we? And I know you like doing human things." I shrugged, suddenly feeling quite self conscious. "You've told me you've never been to the beach before, so..."

I hadn't seen Cas look so shy as he was now, not since we first met face to face during spring break. That look was what had caused my sentence to drift off into nothing. After, quickly, looking around to see if anyone was watching us, Cas leaned forward to kiss my cheek, blushing brightly as he did so.

"Thank you, Dean." he smiled.

Instead of replying to my - _I did not say this_ \- adorable Angel, I got a firmer grip on his hand and started to lead him further towards the beach, after telling him to take off his shoes and socks before going into bathrooms nearby to change into the swim trunks I brought along for him.

We walked along the warm sand, along the line of the shore, hand in hand and dodging little kids as they raced each other into the water. The noise was oddly calming, something I never believed I would have thought - I always loathed too much noise when it came to people, always wishing people in my classes would just shut the hell up. Cas seemed to make it better, though.

"I apologise in advance for anything Gabriel may do today." Cas sighed, tugging at the bottom of his t-shirt. "He really does mean well."

"He has a funny way of showing it." I muttered.

"That he does... He's one that hides behind a lot of his emotions with humour. When he's angry, he makes jokes; when he's sad, he makes jokes... I read his thoughts a few days ago and he still feels guilty about leaving me to myself. He shouldn't, but he does and he thinks that spending as much time as possible with me is the way to make up for it. Sometimes he's just as clueless as me."

"You're not clueless, Cas."

"I can be though. I know I am, especially when it comes to all things human."

"That's what I'm for."

Cas turned his head to face me as we continued to walk, a sort of gratefulness filling his eyes. In return, I just pulled him in closer, swapping holding his hand for wrapping my arm around his waist.

_Maybe the day was salvageable._

* * *

We spent the rest of the morning just walking around the beach, not going into the water until we finished lunch - of course we went to get the towels and things, that I had packed, from my car first. Surprisingly, not many people were at the beach when we went into the water - I suppose it was because so many people were on holiday.

Cas had told me, very quickly, that he didn't know how to swim when I tried to drag him further out into the water - _"I've never had occasion."_ Of course, knowing that, I then had to take it upon myself to teach him. It was entertaining, to say the least, teaching Cas to swim. It was much easier teaching Sam, but teaching Cas was more fun. Though I wasn't sure if he would agree. For starters, it took Cas ten minutes to actually go further into the water. When the water level reached our waists, Cas refused to let go of my hand for, about, twenty minutes. Then he kept sinking, thinking that you only moved your arms to swim. Then he was sinking because he thought you only had to kick your legs. He ended up getting too frustrated, pouting and crossing his arms over his chest, threatening to smite the sea. I would never have said it out loud, but he looked adorable.

I swam over to him, going completely ender the water, only to bob up again in front of him. Cas continued to pout, especially as I started to laugh.

"It's not funny." he muttered.

"It is a little bit." I grinned. "Just relax, and remember to move your arms and legs at _the same time_."

Cas glared at me before turning his gaze to the water between us. When he looked back up, I kissed him gently before moving out of the way.

"Just try." I told him. "I'll be right here if you need me."

Cas nodded, both the glare and the pout gone now. Taking a deep breath, Cas pushed off into the water, moving his arms out to the side before bringing them back in and kicking his legs, repeating both actions over and over. When he returned to a standing position, he turned around, probably expecting to be in the same place. But when he turned, he noticed the wide gap between the pair of us. The ecstatic grin on his face made me wish I had a camera with me, the childlike quality to his expression making him look so much younger than sixteen. Quickly, Cas launched himself back into the water, and before I knew it, he was in front of me again.

"I did it!" Cas beamed. "I did it and I'm still alive!"

"Told you." I smiled, getting my arms around his waist again and dragging him closer to me. "See, all you need to do is trust me - and _not_ get annoyed at the water."

Blushing slightly, Cas dropped his forehead onto my shoulder. Chuckling, I dropped a kiss onto the top of his head, just staring out to the sea. As I watched the waves rolling in, with Cas so close to me, I couldn't help but think of how... _great_ the past three months had been. No, correction, the past - almost - year. Being paired with, meeting and then starting to date Cas had made it the best year of my life. And I couldn't help but think:

"I love you, Cas." I whispered.

I didn't realise I had said it out loud until Cas started to pull away so he could look me in the eyes. I thought, for sure, that I had just completely messed everything up, that I had said all of this far too soon. I thought that I had just messed up something _good_.

"I love you too, Dean." he whispered back.

_Then again, maybe I hadn't._


	7. 2018, 2037 and 2038

**Cas**

_**SATURDAY, MARCH 24TH 2018** _

Looking at everything...I couldn't help but be amazed.

I mean, sure, I knew what it was going to look like, but... _wow_!

Charlie, Jo, Jess and Becky – self appointed bridesmaids, who refused to be called anything else – stood on, what I would call, ' _my side_ ' in knee length, lavender – _not_ purple, Jess was _very_ clear on that – strapless dresses with dark purple sashes around their waists. We had let the girls decide on everything else they did to themselves, thinking it better to do it that way than feel the wrath of the three ladies.

The guys – Gabriel and Balthazar on ' _my side_ ', Sam and Benny on Dean's – wore normal suits, with burgundy waistcoats and ties.

Sure, the purple and red had nothing to do with the ' _colour scheme_ ' that the girls all but _forced_ Dean and I to decide on – of course, I've been thinking about these kinds of things for a while now...and, apparently, I used to tell my mother about my ideas, so Dean just went with everything I had told him – _he found out a few years ago after Gabriel got a bit drunk._

That was why the ' _colour scheme_ ' was white, blue and green.

For reasons only Dean and I knew, we decided to get married at the park. The park where we had first met face to face. The girls had decorated the trees – and cars – after getting mine and Dean's decisions on everything that was going to be used. A mix of green and blue bench ribbons and a blue carpet with white rose petals, white and green ceiling ribbons hanging from the trees. Plus, the girls added a few ideas of their own, like fairy lights – among other things.

Smiling, I looked back at Dean.

I never knew what colour tie he had, but I had to admit that blue worked _really_ well for him. I had decided straight away that my tie would be green, because of his eyes - I was guessing that Charlie had noticed and had all but forced Dean to have a blue tie. Then again, Dean could have made that decision himself... I mean, it's not like I kept the fact I liked seeing Dean in blue a secret. Or red. Or green. Or black. Or white. Or, most colours, actually. Preferably nothing, but that was meant for my eyes only.

But, hey, he looked _good_ in a suit.

* * *

Pictures were taken in the park as well as on the beach Dean took us on our first date, which was where the rest of the day was being spent. It had been decorated similarly to the Park, thanks to the girls, John, Bobby and Ellen - who knew you could book a beach for a wedding.

From the moment everyone was on the beach, mingling and dancing, _so many people_ came up to hug or congratulate us. I was pretty sure some of them came back more than once, just for the hell of it! Gabriel was, obviously, one of those people – loveable bastard that he was.

But it was more funny than it was annoying... For now, anyway.

"If he's not careful, Gabe's going to get a face full of my fist." Dean muttered, dragging me closer to him.

"He's an Angel, Dean. It'll hurt you more than him in the end, if you do." I chuckled. "Just ignore him."

"But that's why I have you - to take away the pain."

"Dean."

"Fine, for you, I will."

"I love you too."

It wasn't long after that that Jo forced us onto the designated ' _dance floor_ ', saying that we can't leave the first dance forever. It was to _I Won't Give Up_ by Jason Mraz. It was just the two of us on the dance floor, arms around each other, heads on each other's shoulders. When I was younger, I never have thought this could happen to me... I was glad I was wrong.

* * *

Later that night – and I mean _way_ later – Dean and I stood in our bedroom in our house, suitcases gripped in one hand, the other holding each others. We thought it would be better if we went by _'Angel Airline_ ' to our Honeymoon destination. I mean, it saved a few hundred dollars!

I guess it was just as well that we decided to plan this part together and not let only one of us choose. I mean, if it was only me, we would have been fine – but if Dean wanted it to be a surprise, well that plan would have been screwed.

Paphos, Cyprus was our destination choice which was, funnily enough, the place where both our parents went on _their_ Honeymoons'. Of course, neither of us knew that until _after_ we booked the hotel and John and Balthazar told us.

But, in a way, I guess that a good thing.

In an instant, we were standing outside of the hotel at, around, six in the morning in Paphos – since it was seven hours later than Kansas. The Louis Ledra Beach Hotel – where we were staying – was a large, white building. The lights outside was just enough for me to see the building and the blue letters on top of it, signalling which hotel it was. The name was engraved on this little porch type thing that covered the stairs and ramp up to the doors of the hotel, almost gold/silver. It looked rather nice.

But the inside was better.

When you walked through the doors there was a bar to your left, reception to the right, seating areas spread out, a stair case and outside seating area on the other side, a small shop near the reception desk and an elevator. There were different mosaics on the walls, and it was all lit up by a soft light. Since it was so early, no one was really around – most being out or still asleep –, and drinks and food had been laid out for those of us arriving now.

While I stood there and looked around, Dean went over to the front desk, checking us in. I left my suitcase where it was by Dean, walking to the outside seating area. In the early morning sun, I could see the two outside swimming pools – one for eighteen's and over, one's for under – that was surrounded by a decking and sun loungers, and the beach not too far away. The air was warm, but it wasn't horrible. The heat was bearable and felt nice as I stood out there. As I stood there, I wondered what my mother thought of this place. If she looked out on the same view as I was right now. If she liked it just as much as I was starting to right now. I closed my eyes as I leant against the railing, letting the small breeze just drift on past, making a small smile pull at the corners of my mouth. I was content to just stand there.

" _Cas?"_ Dean's voice called.

I must have been standing outside for longer than I thought, since Dean was standing behind me with our: suitcases, wrist bands and door key – which also worked the lights. I smiled at the man in front of me, casting one more look at the view we'd be seeing for the next few weeks, before walking over to him and hooking my arms around his neck.

* * *

**Dean**

**_SUNDAY, JULY 12TH 2037_ **

Cas and I had moved into a bigger house when we got the news, Sam and Gabriel moving into the house next to house when they heard it was up for grabs. Sam and I still hunted, Gabriel and Cas even helped us to shorten our time spent away, we even worked out a system that meant we could still hunt without it interfering with what was going on in our lives.

Mine and Cas' eldest child was Tauriel, but the whole family called her Taurie. Her hair fell in long ringlets down her back, blonde like mine and Cas' mothers, her eyes were a dark green, like mine. Tauriel was ten born in January 21st 2027. She was a bright girl, our Tauriel - Charlie was very happy when she found out her name - her intelligence coming from Cas, obviously. Tauriel was very head strong, protective, always getting in between a sibling or cousin and a bully at school, had done from a very young age. She came into her Grace when she was, around, five, thankfully making an appearance during the summer holidays - after dealing with it with her, we were prepared for the next time.

Oliver, we called him Olly - mine and Cas' second child - was nine, born July 5th 2028.. He had short blonde-brown hair, like mine, his eyes were the same dark blue-grey as Cas'. Oliver was slightly taller than Tauriel; so many people assume he's the oldest. It's rather funny seeing Taurie's reaction. Oliver had picked up my sarcastic traits but could be fairly blunt like Cas, something his teachers loathed at times. Gabriel and I found it funny, whilst Sam and Cas were constantly trying to stop us from encouraging him.

Henry , Sam and Gabriel's eldest, was also born during 2028 on August 2nd. His hair was a _really_ light brown, the same length as Sam's but styled like Gabriel's. His eyes were like Gabriel's, hazel with a hint of green. Oliver was the same height as Oliver and had an affinity for playing pranks like a certain Angel. He and Oliver both got hit with their Grace at the same time but, because we all knew what was coming from dealing with Tauriel, we were all ready.

Laura, we called her Lor or Ra-Ra, the third of mine and Cas' kids, was eight, born on October 16th 2029. Her hair was long, but not as long as Taurie's, and was a light brown, the blonde from my hair mixing with Cas' dark brown, her eyes were a dark green with the slightest tint of blue. She was smaller than Tauriel, but not by a lot, but she was fine with that. Laura was extremely stubborn, refusing to back down no matter what. It was great if you were on her side in an argument/debate, but being on the opposite? Well, you had to get ready for a tantrum. Aside from that, Laura was an amazing little girl, easy going until it came to something she had a strong opinion about.

Mary, Henry's sister, Sam and Gabriel's youngest was seven, born on June 17th 2030. Mary had Sam's dark brown hair, her eyes the same as Sam's with a tint of hazel. She was the same height as Laura, for now, but no one knew if she would take after Sam or Gabriel in height - the same went for Henry. Mary, like Sam, loved to learn and research, always asking questions about the things we hunted. We didn't tell her _everything_ , only little things that wouldn't give her nightmares. Sam was looking forward to the day when he could teach his daughter everything he knew.

Bayley was four, born April 10th 2033, the youngest of mine and Cas' as well as the youngest out of all the kids. He had dark hair that hung just below his ears like a mop, no one could tell if it was dark brown or black; dark blue eyes with tints of green, but sometimes his eyes would go though the different shades of blue at different times sometimes, or sometimes they would change colour all together; a little pale; freckles. Bayley, though he looked scrawny, was quite strong, even when he didn't use his Angel strength. It was very surprising that, when he was a baby, before his Grace set in, he was able to shove over his older brother, who was obviously a lot bigger than him at the time. Cas and Gabriel even confirmed that it wasn't because of his Grace. Though, when his Grace did set in when he was two, boy, it was a hell of a lot of fun helping him control that – thank God it set in early!

Even though all six kids were Nephilims, it was easy to get the other Angels off their backs - it helped when the Archangel Michael was their Uncle. I didn't see how Nephilims were seen as abominations when Tauriel, Oliver, Henry, Laura, Mary and Bayley were harmless - the sweetest kids you could ever meet. How could they all be judged when they everyone was so different?

"Daddy! Make Papa stop!" Bayley squealed as he ran into the kitchen, clutching my leg once he reached me.

Turning from where I had been making pie - something all the kids had picked up from me was the love of pie - I lifted my youngest off of the floor, balancing him on my hip as I leant against the kitchen counter.

"What's Papa doing, Bay-leaf?" I smiled, moving his hair out of his face.

"Tickling." he giggled, burying his face into the side of my neck.

It was at that point that Cas came skidding into the kitchen, a wide grin plastered to his face. Over the years, as Cas learnt and understood human customs, he had relaxed and smiled far more than he used to. After getting married and after having the kids, it just seemed to come a lot easier than before.

"Hey, that's cheating, Bumblebee." Cas chuckled, walking over to us slowly.

Bayley just giggled, burying his face further into me as Cas got closer.

Once Cas was close enough, I hooked my arm around him, dragging him into my side, content in holding my Angel and our youngest in my arms. Content with my family.

* * *

**Cas**

_**WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24TH 2038** _

On our twentieth anniversary, I woke up alone in bed. Usually, I woke up with Dean next to me, watching me as I slept like I had done to him many times before - our anniversary was one of the only days when he woke up before me. But, today, he wasn't. Instead, I found a note on his pillow.

_Dear The Angel,_

_24 years and seven months ago, our High School decided to create a Pen Pal programme. I was lucky enough to get you._

_24 years ago, to the day, you and I met for the very first time, face to face._

_23 years and eight months ago, I took you on our first date after, around, three months of already being together._

_22 years ago, to the day, I proposed to you and you made me the happiest guy when you said yes._

_11 years, 2 months and 3 days ago, we had Tauriel._

_Almost 10 years ago, we had Oliver._

_Almost 9 years ago, we had Laura._

_Almost five years ago, we had Bayley._

_There's so much that I haven't mentioned, so many things that I have loved over the years - but these were just the highlights._

_Without the programme our school set up, I would have never been able to speak to you - you would have continued to avoid me because you thought I was like everyone else. Without Michael and Lucifer fighting that day, you would have never come over and I wouldn't have kissed you as soon as I had. Without Balthazar taking you away from that house, I don't know... Well, there's a lot I don't know. What I_ do _know is that I love you. I love you and I always have loved you. You are my Angel. My real life Angel. The Angel that my mom said was watching over me. How can you not be when you've made everything in my life so perfect?_ You _are my life Cas. You and the kids and Sammy and Gabe and our niece and nephew._

_Thank you for being my life, Angel. Thank you for the best 24 plus years of my life_

_I_ love _you, Castiel James Winchester-Novak. And don't you ever forget that._

_All my love,_

_The Hunter -_ YOUR _Hunter_

I didn't realise I was crying until a tear hit my hand, the feeling making me jump slightly. Dean always seemed to have the right words to make me unbelievably happy. He always said that he hated chick flick moments, didn't do emotions, something which he contradicted _constantly_ , but he always seemed to know the right thing to say and do.

And it gave me the perfect idea.

* * *

**Dean**

By the time I got back to our room, Cas was gone and so was the note I had wrote him. In its place, however, on _Cas_ ' pillow, was a new note, one in my Angels handwriting.

_Dear The Hunter,_

_All my life, I thought I was the reason for my mother killing herself and my father turning the way he did. All my life, I thought I was the reason for people hating me. You, my wonderful Hunter, have changed that. You made me see that I am not the reason for any of this. You made me see that someone_ can _love me. You made me see that showing my emotions is a_ good _thing._

_I had nothing good in my life until I started talking to you... And now? Now I have my brothers back. I have our niece and nephew. I have you. I have our children. I have a family again, all because of you and the fact you wanted to talk to me whilst being Pen Pals. Because of you, I am happy._

_24 years and seven months ago, I was ready to kill myself. I was ready to be rid of myself until you came into my life. I may be your life but, not only are you mine, but you gave me a reason to live._

_When we met for the first time, face to face, I was so shocked to find that Dean Winchester was the person that had been writing to and texting me for all those months. I thought, for sure, you were going to want nothing to do with me anymore... When you revealed that you had always wanted to be my friend? Well, it gave me hope. I'm sure I started falling in love with you right there and then._

_The night you kissed me? I was sure it was a one off. But then you agreed with my brothers when they called you my boyfriend... You have no idea how amazing that made me feel. Someone actually wanted me... And our first date? I couldn't have asked for anything better. It was better than I had ever imagined and you even said you loved me. You said you loved me and I felt as if I was flying with my feet on the ground!_

_22 years ago, you proposed to me. I could think of nothing to say but yes, because what else was I to say? How could I say no when I loved you so much? But you were so nervous, so worried that I would say no. And when I said yes? You looked so amazed, so happy, that any doubt you thought I could have didn't exist at all._

_And our children... When Balthazar told Gabriel and I that we could give you and Sam children of your own, I was speechless. I thought for sure that we were not going to be able to have children of our own... But when Balthazar told us that the Grace that the baby would have would attach itself to our own, only detaching after nine months, I couldn't believe it. I thought we would stop at one, stop at Taurie, but then we found out that it had happened again and Oliver would be appearing soon. Then it happened with Laura. And again with Bayley. We have four amazing children - children who we get to give the life they deserve._

_I_ love _you, Dean Michael Winchester-Novak._

_Forever yours,_

_The Angel -_ YOUR _Angel_

I had to read Cas' ' _24 years ago_ ' part, at least, five times for it to sink in. My Cas - my gorgeous, perfect Angel - was close to ending his life when we started talking to each other. My happy, bubbly husband... It broke my heart to think of what could have happened if I never took the Pen Pal programme seriously, if I decided it was a joke and washed my hands with it... Cas would have been dead and... No. I couldn't even finish that thought. All I could think of was getting my hands on my Angel.

"Hello, Dean." Cas' voice came from behind me.

Spinning round, setting the note on the table on my side of the bed, I found my Angel standing by the doorway to our bedroom.

"I see you found my letter." he continued, a small smile on his face.

Slowly, I walked over to him, wrapping on arm around his waist and the other around his shoulders, pulling him close to me so his hands were pressed against my chest.

"My Angel." I muttered, pressing my lips to the top of his head.

"My Hunter." Cas whispered, pushing closer to me.

That was all we had to say to know what the other meant. To know what we meant to each other. We weren't just Pen Pals to each other anymore - we were _everything_ to each other. And I wouldn't have had it any other way.

**Author's Note:**

> Please, please review XD
> 
> Thanks XD


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